I Have a Dream Summary

On August 28, 1963, King gives his speech for freedom. He begins his speech with the emancipation of the slaves, issued by Abraham Lincoln, and later mentions that after being freed from slavery, blacks are still not free. King claims all men were issued a check and a promise of freedom, yet for black men and women that check has come back with “insufficient funds.” The members of the civil rights union issue a check to America, they return America’s unkept promise with one they are sure to keep: the continued pursuit of justice. King, along with his many supporters, demand their freedom now, they demand things to change with a sense of urgency and without procrastination from the oppressor. They do not want to see slow change over time; they would rather see significant change immediately. The reason for “I Have a Dream” massive impact is due to the tense social mood of the time and that it reflects the conditions of the time, giving black activists a vision for the future. It struck directly into the hearts of blacks across America, made whites ashamed of their actions and willing to have a new start and shook society to its roots. In just 17 minutes, King influenced and informed the generations and generations of people about racial equality and fairness. According to almost all scholars, the seventeen-minute speech is a masterpiece of rhetoric. This is obvious when analyzing the speech as one can notice that King carefully structures his speech to appeal to the different types of audience, supporting it with the three rhetorical modes of ethos, pathos and logos which are reinforced with different rhetorical tropes and schemes, marking King’s name in history. Even now, it continues to make generations of people, not just Americans, to give up their racist beliefs and advocate social colorblindness. Without King, America would be probably still heavily segregated. Other than the speech’s heartwarming and moving content, King’s effective structure along with the